Business leaders who want to see improved business results must first present to their employees a launch path to success. That does not mean that all the answers to the organization’s challenges must be provided by the leader. In fact, employees should be fully engaged in finding new, unexpected, and beneficial solutions to critical problems. They should also be challenged to find innovative ways to exploit opportunities.
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Running a business can be a lot like riding a roller coaster – long spells of a slow grind uphill to meet the daily demands, with short bursts at breakneck speed to meet customer deliverables and internal commitments.
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Each time people come together to address important organizational issues and a facilitator is engaged there should be high expectations and low risk. The high expectations are for anticipated breakthroughs. The low risk refers to the possibility of not meeting client expectations.
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Due to the pandemic and resulting economic meltdown, businesses are facing an unparalleled assault on their ability to stay viable. While these are anxious and unprecedented times, business leaders must focus their energy on addressing the acute issues that will impede their ability to stay in business. Now is not the time for perfection, but it is the time for clear, focused thinking, about decisive actions to drive immediate results.
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Our firm, Hewat Strategic Edge, helps clients build strategic frameworks as part of their strategic planning process. The Strategic Framework always includes a Vision Statement as a guiding element.
I am frequently asked during planning sessions, why they are not focusing on Mission as well as Vision? Part of the answer lies in the difference between the two.
In the past two decades, I have been privileged to work with the leadership of many Canadian professional and trade associations. Each engagement has been a window into what works and what doesn’t, in terms of creating and sustaining value for members.
We have identified seven areas that each association should master.
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Maintaining focus in business is essential if we are to provide value to our customers and achieve the required financial returns. But the question is what to focus on? I believe it comes down to doing three things well.
When considering engaging a business facilitator to conduct a planning session, it helps to anticipate what value the strategic facilitator should bring to the planning meeting. Planning sessions are typically signal events in the life of organizations. There is no room for failure.
Business Action Plans are like the meat in a sandwich. They provide the content between strategic and operational planning. A Business Action Plan can cut across a company, division or department.
You may have decided to undertake a Strategic Planning Process within your Association. Or, you may be about to recommend that your Association develops a multi-year plan. In either case this article may be helpful.